The Abolitionst Vegan Society (TAVS) Tenets
An Animal Rights Article from All-Creatures.org

FROM

The Abolitionst Vegan Society (TAVS)
March 2015

The TAVS Tenets are informed by both ethical and strategic considerations:

Veganism is a Moral Obligation and the Moral Minimum

• Veganism is a moral obligation for humans and the moral minimum for nonhuman animal advocacy.

Nonveganism is a Fundamental Injustice

• Nonveganism is a fundamental injustice because nonhuman animals are full members of the moral community based on sentience alone.
• We, therefore, reject the promotion of nonveganism including going “veg,” going “veggie,” a vegetarian diet, vegetarianism, “humane” animal products and uses, backyard and cage-free eggs, free-range nonhuman animal products, Meatless Monday, Meat Free Monday, Fur Free Friday, and any other form of nonveganism.

Our Strategy and Our Advocacy

• Our strategy for changing the paradigm for nonhuman animals emphasizes going vegan, educating others to go vegan, and adopting and fostering nonhuman animals who are homeless. We adhere to this strategy to advance toward the goals of abolishing the property status of nonhuman animals and ending domestication both of which are inherently unjust.
• Our advocacy reflects our position that veganism is the moral minimum. Our primary form of advocacy is vegan education which takes many forms.
• We reject single issue campaigns, including welfare reform, in nonhuman animal advocacy.

Nonviolence is Critically Important and Our Commitment

• Nonviolence is critically important to the very success of our cause. Our commitment to nonviolence is informed by both ethical and strategic considerations.

A Holistic, Intersectional, Anti-oppression Approach

• We take a holistic, intersectional, anti-oppression approach from the understanding that fundamental positive change requires the emergence of societal systems and institutions not founded in oppression and violence.
•  Oppression and its associated violence is systemic and institutionalized, not limited to individual acts of discrimination. Therefore, individualism cannot fundamentally remedy systemic and institutionalized oppression.
• We reject all forms of oppression and violence including but not limited to speciesism, racism, sexism, heterosexism, cisgenderism including trans-oppression, ableism, classism, ageism, and sizeism. We recognize the interconnected nature of all forms of oppression and therefore support vegan food justice work and other work to compensate for these injustices.

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